When we mourn, we die to something that gives us a sense of who we are. In this sense suffering always has much to do with the spiritual life. We surrender our striving denial of our limitations. We release our hold on a piece of our identity as a spouse, a parent, as a member of church, as a resident of a community or nation. We may even suffer for our faith. Jesus’ first followers were handed over to persecution and death. And so we admit, not without many tears, that we sometimes must let go of what we hold very dear.
